If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

A pleasant surprise: Dawn of the Jedi: Into the Void by Tim Lebbon. Usually, first-time SW writers starting new books, especially without established characters, tend to be so-so at best. This is set about 25,000 years BBY, with early Je'daii Rangers and no Sith bad guys. The plot centers around a family and one who's not good. There's a veiled comment about a certain villain from the OT, and a few touch-in-cheek lines ("... and droids don't dream" comes to mind). I was hesitant, but this series (I assume there will be more) looks pretty good; and there's a comic series to go along with it, I guess (well, as long as Dark Horse has the license).

In the same style as his Vader and Son, Jeffrey Brown's Vader's Little Princess was quite funny. Dozens of one-page color drawings of how tough it is for a single Darth raising a "rebellious" teenager (as its opening crawl said).

A pleasant surprise: Dawn of the Jedi: Into the Void by Tim Lebbon. Usually, first-time SW writers starting new books, especially without established characters, tend to be so-so at best. This is set about 25,000 years BBY, with early Je'daii Rangers and no Sith bad guys. The plot centers around a family and one who's not good. There's a veiled comment about a certain villain from the OT, and a few touch-in-cheek lines ("... and droids don't dream" comes to mind). I was hesitant, but this series (I assume there will be more) looks pretty good; and there's a comic series to go along with it, I guess (well, as long as Dark Horse has the license).

I considered buying this one, but didn't. Since you gave it a good recommendation, I might reconsider. I am reading the comic series.

I'd actually appreciate MOST the story of Vima Sunrider (trained by Qel Droma after he leaves the Sith and is redeemed - something I don't think has ever happened with any other Sith Lord). Well Qel Droma is then killed, but Vima Sunrider goes on, and her mother Nomi eventually becomes the head of the Jedi Council, but Vima is an unconventional free spirit, as he dead Master was an ex-Sith Lord. Now THAT is interesting!

Meanwhile, the Sith's conquering of the Mandalorians (by the dark Lord Qel Droma, Ulic didn't use the title Darth), is what set the Mandalorians off and loose against the galaxy, leading to the Mandalorian Wars in KOTOR, and the rise of Darth Revan and Darth Malak.

Oh yeah - Revan's an ex-Sith Lord. But Darth Revan was kind of possessed and warped, tricked into the Dark Side. I suppose Ulic was, but his mission to avenge the death of his Jedi Master Arca and his love affair (when he left Nomi Sunrider to become...) involved with the Sith Witch Aleema Keto, was Ulic's free choice.

It was actually revealed that the "real Sith Emperor" had influenced and might still have held some control over Revan and Malak during the Mandalorian Wars. I don't think they were ever as powerful as Dark Lord Exar Kun and his apprentice Lord Qel Droma, the latter upon which the Mandalorians really swore their allegiance to the Sith under (and at that time, they meant it).

Anyway, Vima Sunrider's story continues that legacy and I would have loved to see her story continue.

The Darn of the Jedi era does create a problem for me: those pyramid / diamond ships scouting around the galaxy just luring and picking up various pre-light-speed-space-travel species and dumping them on Tython to become the Je'Dai (spelling). See I liked midi-chlorians being introduced because I like explanations. There needs to be some kind of explanation for the Tython ships in my opinion. I'm friends with John Ostrander, I'll write to him about it. Doesn't mean I indluence anything. It's just an opinion and everyone has one.

Anyway, after Revan and Malak, and the defeat of the "real Sith Empire" of the time (crash survivors from way back to Naga Sadow's invasion forces and off-site from Korriban and the planets near its system like Rhen Var - original Sith species' Empire), there is some lineage of Sith down to Lord Kaan (who battled the Jedi Lord Hoth) from the war only Darth Bane survived (of the Sith).

You know the rest down to Tenebus, Plageuis, Sidious, Maul (revealed to almost NOT be a real Sith Lord), Tyranus (the real Sith Apprentice of the PT), and Vader...then Caedus (Jacen Solo, next?) and Kraayt (A'Sharad Hett) and then (Wrylock?) with any potential Episode 7 Sith coming (likely) after Darth Caedus*

*If Carrie Fisher plays Leia at Carrie's age, Jaina Solo (Empress Fel) will be about 32 years old and both her brothers (twin Jacen Solo, and Anakin Solo) long dead since the Yuuzhan Vong War, with sort-of orphaned 9 year old Allanah Solo being raised as Han and Leia's grand-daughter. Allanah Solo can grow up along with her older cousin (nearly 20 years old Ben Skywalker) in the next movie trilogy.

There are rumors that if the EU is referenced, you might see Jaina Solo KILL her brother "Darth Caedus" in the opening sequence of Episode 7.

Another rumor suggests E7 is about that, and lessons being learned from it as taught by Luke to his son Ben Skywalker (Mara Jade's son with Luke). This presents the possibility that Mark and Carrie will play their characters 15 years or more younger than the actors actually are.

Everyone clamoring for something new, not in the books, but in accord with a "Lucas original outline for 12 episodes" (which I do not necessarily believe ever exists - and maybe everything in E1-6 was condensed from 12 episodes and shown to us already - which would make sense if his comments it was all about the rise and fall of Anakin was completely true)....

could still see something new not from books, if we have Jaina Solo in the story AFTER the events that have happened in the books. She could be "tortured from the wars," but it never mentioned that she had a twin brother and killed him.

She might not be in the film at all, btw. But Carrie said she's "grandma Leia." If she's not joking, and Allanah Solo is in the movie (about 9 years old if Carrie plays Leia at Carrie's own age), then yes, Han and Leia could say "they're raising a grand-daughter because they lost their children." Indeed, that's true since Allanah's father is dead (Jacen) and her mother (Tenel Ka) wants Allanah hidden in seclusion because those wishing to topple the Hapan Empire (Tenel Ka is the Queen Mother now) would assassinate any heir and Allanah's Jedi training is not complete - presumably Leia is now a Jedi and training her grand-daughter as well.

Anyway, the book-end eras of SW are very interesting to me. (Well Vima Sunrider's part of the early times anyway).

The new cartoon series is supposed to take place between Episodes 3 and 4. (SW Rebels) I hope it will be good as well, but it's not as interesting as this stuff.

Star Wars Rebels will be a young cast of "Rebels."

Some thoughts:

1) Bail Organa - not really young though he's about 40 in ROTS - FOUNDER
2) Bria Tharen - Han Solo's first girlfriend - she'd be about 7 or 8 years old in ROTS
3) Mon Mothma - FOUNDER - she's 27 in ROTS
4) Padme Amidala - FOUNDER - what if they buried a hand-maiden who was killed and faked her death. Vader can tragically kill her again.
5) Garm Bel Ibis - FOUNDER (not young! He was an Imperial Senator that spoke at Han Solo's grade school class once, 40 in ROTS)
6) Starkiller - forgot his real name. That's a code-name for him as Vader's operative (not sure his age, maybe 10 years in ROTS
7) Obi-Wan's ex-Jedi friend (that left the order because of an incident with pre-Vader Anakin - Last of the Jedi books)
8) Leia Organa - she might be too young to be involved, depending upon when this series is set, but she'd be a smart inclusion if possible

NOT ALLIGNED:

Obi-Wan Kenobi (not young, but Ewan McGreggor's age, so not old either, he's been known to leave Tatooine on missions, he's 37)
Han Solo (from age 29 to younger, he's 10 years old during ROTS, so depends when the series takes place)
Lando Calrissian (he's maybe 12 years old during ROTS)
Boba Fett (he's 13 years old during ROTS)

BAD Pts Need:R5-C7 lf leg (x2), , R4-P44 right leg BAD Pts Offered For Trade: PM me - I have lots of parts now including BG-J38!. New Kyle Katarn is also available.

I almost missed this one, as I saw it on the New Fiction shelf at the library without realizing the book had even been released: Troy Denning's Crucible. It begins with some girls in the forest, where their religion forbids them to... wait. Wrong one.

I have not liked much of the recent EU in the post-Vong era (especially the multi-book series), but this one was pretty good, and from the start of it, too. But 45 years after ANH? That means Luke and Leia are 64, while Han is 74 (with Lando near that, too). The SW action scenes sure don't take age into consideration anymore, even for Jedi. But there were some parallels to Zahn's The Last Command in style, tone, and plot (that's good), with some of the Fate of the Jedi weirdness (that's less good) thrown in, plus the CW episode with the Ones and Force visions. I was wondering how the story would wrap up, which is definitely not something I've done much in the EU stories, and I actually CARED how it ended, too. Denning's a good writer, and as a stand-alone hardcover novel, it's one of the best to come out in the past half decade or so, IMHO. And the end-of-the-book preview of Kenobi sounds good, as well.

Another SW site had a brief synosis about Crucible, and had a few interesting sentences that said the publisher is backing away from multi-book story arcs and going for more stand-alone stories.

I have some of the Vong stories, but I haven't read them. Even at Celebration 2, the publisher admitted that series was too ambitious and long. I'm about halfway through the Fate of the Jedi series, and that's nine books. I wouldn't have gone out of my way and purchased them; the library has gotten them in.

Have about 100 pages of Choices of One remaining. Have a road trip planned for next weekend; 6 1/2 hours in the car one-way. Weeeee!!! Either taking Mercy Kill or Annihilation with me to read.

I have been trying to read Old Republic: Deceived for a while now. I'm not sure it's a bad story at all. It's just that while I'm writing my own thing, I'm constantly re-reading it - or non-fiction for my research that would apply.

BAD Pts Need:R5-C7 lf leg (x2), , R4-P44 right leg BAD Pts Offered For Trade: PM me - I have lots of parts now including BG-J38!. New Kyle Katarn is also available.